CLASS DESCRIPTION:

This class utilizes contact improvisation as a tool for influencing solo body movement. Using touch and guided partnering scores we will delve into the “What If?” of technical phrases and how dancers can shift the attention of their body to encourage the multitudes of initiation points and textures of a given phrase.

Kara Beadle (they/them) is a movement artist, dance educator, and massage therapist based in Seattle, WA. Kara has performed in works by Badmarmar, Gender Tender, PRICEArts’ N.E.W. Dance Company, Stasia Coup, and others. Kara is currently a company member of Kinesis Project. Their own work has been shown in Next Fest Northwest: Rupture/Reverence, Show 5 Co- Performance and a Party, Georgetown’s Art Attack, The Shed’s Being Mode Residency Showing: Character Arc, Open Flight Studio’s Flight Deck Residency Showing, 18th and Union’s Portable Performance Festival, Velocity Dance Center’s Fall Kick-off: Portals, and The Seattle International Dance Festival.

photo by Dominique See

Class Description:

We begin with locating ourselves/one another through grounding and improvisational practices before exploring phrase-work and a combo. We will work with sensation, visualization, states of being and memory to work with energy in the space, feel into our truth and play more. Class is a place you are welcome to explore the inward/outward dynamic of your multidimensional body in relationship to self, others, objects, concepts, place, and space. As we open the channels of the body, we release our grip on what we think we should do/be and tune our intuition to gently encourage our desire/truth to move through us in integrity. We will generate responsiveness (self-responsibility) so we can meet ourselves at our edge, and then laugh about it.

Juliet Paramor is a dance artist & teacher. Her movement practice is rooted in somatics, improvisation, sensuality and release technique. Juliet works with sensation, states of being, humor, memory, nature and storytelling to work with energy in the space, feel sexy and play more. The space between things and the space where transformation occurs excites Juliet. Changing seasons, dreams, synapses, the birth canal, public transportation, silence, sex, death, seeds sprouting, movement, edges, the fertile void.

Learn more at https://www.julietparamor.com/

photo by Ludger Storks

Class Description:

We begin with locating ourselves/one another through grounding and improvisational practices before exploring phrase-work and a combo. We will work with sensation, visualization, states of being and memory to work with energy in the space, feel into our truth and play more. Class is a place you are welcome to explore the inward/outward dynamic of your multidimensional body in relationship to self, others, objects, concepts, place, and space. As we open the channels of the body, we release our grip on what we think we should do/be and tune our intuition to gently encourage our desire/truth to move through us in integrity. We will generate responsiveness (self-responsibility) so we can meet ourselves at our edge, and then laugh about it.

Juliet Paramor is a dance artist & teacher. Her movement practice is rooted in somatics, improvisation, sensuality and release technique. Juliet works with sensation, states of being, humor, memory, nature and storytelling to work with energy in the space, feel sexy and play more. The space between things and the space where transformation occurs excites Juliet. Changing seasons, dreams, synapses, the birth canal, public transportation, silence, sex, death, seeds sprouting, movement, edges, the fertile void.

Learn more at https://www.julietparamor.com/

photo by Ludger Storks

Class Description:

We begin with locating ourselves/one another through grounding and improvisational practices before exploring phrase-work and a combo. We will work with sensation, visualization, states of being and memory to work with energy in the space, feel into our truth and play more. As we open the channels of the body, we release our grip on what we think we should do/be and tune our intuition to gently encourage our desire/truth to move through us in integrity. We will generate responsiveness (self-responsibility) so we can meet ourselves at our edge, and then laugh about it.

Juliet Paramor’s movement practice is rooted in somatics, improvisation, sensuality and release technique. Juliet works with sensation, states of being, humor, memory, nature and storytelling to work with energy in the space, feel sexy and play more. The space between things and the space where transformation occurs excites Juliet. Changing seasons, dreams, synapses, the birth canal, public transportation, silence, sex, death, seeds sprouting, movement, edges, the fertile void. Class is a place where you are welcome to explore the inward/outward dynamic of your multidimensional body in relation to self, others, objects, concepts, place, and space.

Learn more at https://www.julietparamor.com/

photo by steve dibartolomeo

Class Description: Class will begin with a short somatic and improvised warm-up, progressing to floor and standing exercises and finishing with standing phrasework. Pedagogical influences include improvisation, contemporary floorwork, Release Technique and Countertechnique. Phrasework is driven by detail, endurance, musicality, choice-making and joy. This class is well-suited for advanced/professional movers.

Emma Lawes (she/her) is a dancer, educator and producer based between Los Angeles and Seattle. Currently, she is exploring her own solo work, teaching on faculty at Orange County School of the Arts, and producing a series of performance/parties as one half of co—. She has presented work at Base: Experimental Arts + Space, 10 Degrees Arts + Events, and Atwater Village Theater. She is a graduate of the University of the Arts with a BFA in Dance Performance under the direction of Donna Faye Burchfield.

Class Description: Class will begin with a short somatic and improvised warm-up, progressing to floor and standing exercises and finishing with standing phrasework. Pedagogical influences include improvisation, contemporary floorwork, Release Technique and Countertechnique. Phrasework is driven by detail, endurance, musicality, choice-making and joy. This class is well-suited for advanced/professional movers.

Emma Lawes (she/her) is a dancer, educator and producer based between Los Angeles and Seattle. Currently, she is exploring her own solo work, teaching on faculty at Orange County School of the Arts, and producing a series of performance/parties as one half of co—. She has presented work at Base: Experimental Arts + Space, 10 Degrees Arts + Events, and Atwater Village Theater. She is a graduate of the University of the Arts with a BFA in Dance Performance under the direction of Donna Faye Burchfield.

Class Description: Class will begin with a short somatic and improvised warm-up, progressing to floor and standing exercises and finishing with standing phrasework. Pedagogical influences include improvisation, contemporary floorwork, Release Technique and Countertechnique. Phrasework is driven by detail, endurance, musicality, choice-making and joy. This class is well-suited for advanced/professional movers.

Emma Lawes (she/her) is a dancer, educator and producer based between Los Angeles and Seattle. Currently, she is exploring her own solo work, teaching on faculty at Orange County School of the Arts, and producing a series of performance/parties as one half of co—. She has presented work at Base: Experimental Arts + Space, 10 Degrees Arts + Events, and Atwater Village Theater. She is a graduate of the University of the Arts with a BFA in Dance Performance under the direction of Donna Faye Burchfield.

Class Description: Class will begin with a short somatic and improvised warm-up, progressing to floor and standing exercises and finishing with standing phrasework. Pedagogical influences include improvisation, contemporary floorwork, Release Technique and Countertechnique. Phrasework is driven by detail, endurance, musicality, choice-making and joy. This class is well-suited for advanced/professional movers.

Emma Lawes (she/her) is a dancer, educator and producer based between Los Angeles and Seattle. Currently, she is exploring her own solo work, teaching on faculty at Orange County School of the Arts, and producing a series of performance/parties as one half of co—. She has presented work at Base: Experimental Arts + Space, 10 Degrees Arts + Events, and Atwater Village Theater. She is a graduate of the University of the Arts with a BFA in Dance Performance under the direction of Donna Faye Burchfield.

Horton Basics and Contemporary Choreography 

Students will learn foundational exercises of the Lester Horton dance technique, a modern dance technique first developed during the 1920s-40s that is still practiced today by many schools and companies including Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. Students will then learn phrases from Robbi’s own choreography and also create their own creative phrases using the material they learned. 

Robbi Moore (they/them), from Hamden, CT, began dancing at New England Ballet and continued at Dee Dee’s Dance Center and New Haven Ballet. They are an alumnus of Earl Mosley’s Institute of the Arts, the Ailey Summer Intensive, Cunningham Trust Workshop, Jacob’s Pillow’s Commercial Dance Program, and the Complexions Intensive. They went to Mexico with JUNTOS Collective, and taught with Notes in Motion, Arthur Aviles Typical Theatre, and JD/dansfolk. Robbi graduated magna cum laude from the Ailey/Fordham BFA Program and has danced with Amanda Selwyn Dance Theatre, The Steps Repertory Ensemble, AATMA Performing Arts, Whidbey Island Dance Theatre, Tacoma Urban Performing Arts Center, Karin Stevens Dance, the Guild Dance Company, Kinesis Project Dance Theater, The Gray, PRICEarts, Coriolis Dance, Khambatta Dance Company, and Spectrum Dance Theater. Robbi recently worked for The Village Theatre as Associate Choreographer for "Little Shop of Horrors".

IG robbi_a_moore.dance 

Photo by Michelle Smith-Lewis

Horton Basics and Contemporary Choreography 

Students will learn foundational exercises of the Lester Horton dance technique, a modern dance technique first developed during the 1920s-40s that is still practiced today by many schools and companies including Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. Students will then learn phrases from Robbi’s own choreography and also create their own creative phrases using the material they learned. 

Robbi Moore (they/them), from Hamden, CT, began dancing at New England Ballet and continued at Dee Dee’s Dance Center and New Haven Ballet. They are an alumnus of Earl Mosley’s Institute of the Arts, the Ailey Summer Intensive, Cunningham Trust Workshop, Jacob’s Pillow’s Commercial Dance Program, and the Complexions Intensive. They went to Mexico with JUNTOS Collective, and taught with Notes in Motion, Arthur Aviles Typical Theatre, and JD/dansfolk. Robbi graduated magna cum laude from the Ailey/Fordham BFA Program and has danced with Amanda Selwyn Dance Theatre, The Steps Repertory Ensemble, AATMA Performing Arts, Whidbey Island Dance Theatre, Tacoma Urban Performing Arts Center, Karin Stevens Dance, the Guild Dance Company, Kinesis Project Dance Theater, The Gray, PRICEarts, Coriolis Dance, Khambatta Dance Company, and Spectrum Dance Theater. Robbi recently worked for The Village Theatre as Associate Choreographer for "Little Shop of Horrors".

IG robbi_a_moore.dance 

Photo by Michelle Smith-Lewis

Horton Basics and Contemporary Choreography 

Students will learn foundational exercises of the Lester Horton dance technique, a modern dance technique first developed during the 1920s-40s that is still practiced today by many schools and companies including Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. Students will then learn phrases from Robbi’s own choreography and also create their own creative phrases using the material they learned. 

Robbi Moore (they/them), from Hamden, CT, began dancing at New England Ballet and continued at Dee Dee’s Dance Center and New Haven Ballet. They are an alumnus of Earl Mosley’s Institute of the Arts, the Ailey Summer Intensive, Cunningham Trust Workshop, Jacob’s Pillow’s Commercial Dance Program, and the Complexions Intensive. They went to Mexico with JUNTOS Collective, and taught with Notes in Motion, Arthur Aviles Typical Theatre, and JD/dansfolk. Robbi graduated magna cum laude from the Ailey/Fordham BFA Program and has danced with Amanda Selwyn Dance Theatre, The Steps Repertory Ensemble, AATMA Performing Arts, Whidbey Island Dance Theatre, Tacoma Urban Performing Arts Center, Karin Stevens Dance, the Guild Dance Company, Kinesis Project Dance Theater, The Gray, PRICEarts, Coriolis Dance, Khambatta Dance Company, and Spectrum Dance Theater. Robbi recently worked for The Village Theatre as Associate Choreographer for "Little Shop of Horrors".

IG robbi_a_moore.dance 

Photo by Michelle Smith-Lewis

PRICE: $15-25

Class Description:

This is an hour and half of guided explorations around the inherent relationship between sound and the body. Class will begin with short vocal warmups to prepare the body for wider expressivity and auditory attunement. We will quickly start incorporating movement and gestures to investigate how our physicality is shaped by our melodic prosody and vice versa. This is a class that puts into action how our physicality reflects the sonic textures residing in the body. Through movement and vocal play, we will ponder how freeing up sounds caught in the body is a gateway to freeing up emotional memories stuck in the body. With sound, movement and breath being deeply intertwined with the bodily experience of past, present, and future, we will use those three tools to investigate our understanding and attunement to both memory and the moment. This is a class focused on empowering and prioritizing the voice – its power to vocalize, its flexibility to resonate to other sounds, and its capacity to shape (and BE shaped) by a human-generated sonic atmosphere. Throughout class, we will oscillate between listening to the explicit (people harmonically shaping the space) and attuning to the implicit melodies (what is invisibly echoed in parts of our body as OUR story). Improvisatory movement and coordinated breathwork will be used continuously as a companion to our sounds and will be a supportive backdrop to these explorations. 

BIO:

Livanna Maislen received her BFA in Dance at NYU Tisch School of the Arts, and upon graduating ventured into Aerial Dance. Maislen has performed aerial-installations for Microsoft, Clinique, Verizon and Nestle, and has toured abroad in Italy, Czech Republic and Bahrain. While Dancer/Rehearsal Assistant with Time Lapse Dance (a Loie Fuller-inspired company), Maislen led residencies at Hofstra and De Sale’s University. In 2013, Maislen became a performer with the Off-Broadway show Sleep No More, where she played eight different roles during her 7 year tenure with Punchdrunk. In 2015, Maislen became Dancer and Rehearsal Assistant for The Francesca Harper Project (FHP), where she assisted in projects such as Nick Cave's Bessie-Award Winning show “The Let Go”, Nona Hendryx & Carrie Mae Weem's "Refrigerated Dreams" and Austria’s Bregenzer Fruehling’s Tanzfestival. Maislen has performed for Nicole von Arx, Yin Yue, Karole Armitage, the San Francisco Opera and the Seattle Opera. She is currently pursuing her Master’s Degree in Somatic Psychotherapy at CIIS and is developing a somatic practice that interweaves her knowledge of movement, mindfulness practices, theatre, and the power of sound.

IG - @livanna-maislen

PRICE: $15-25

Class Description:

This is an hour and half of guided explorations around the inherent relationship between sound and the body. Class will begin with short vocal warmups to prepare the body for wider expressivity and auditory attunement. We will quickly start incorporating movement and gestures to investigate how our physicality is shaped by our melodic prosody and vice versa. This is a class that puts into action how our physicality reflects the sonic textures residing in the body. Through movement and vocal play, we will ponder how freeing up sounds caught in the body is a gateway to freeing up emotional memories stuck in the body. With sound, movement and breath being deeply intertwined with the bodily experience of past, present, and future, we will use those three tools to investigate our understanding and attunement to both memory and the moment. This is a class focused on empowering and prioritizing the voice – its power to vocalize, its flexibility to resonate to other sounds, and its capacity to shape (and BE shaped) by a human-generated sonic atmosphere. Throughout class, we will oscillate between listening to the explicit (people harmonically shaping the space) and attuning to the implicit melodies (what is invisibly echoed in parts of our body as OUR story). Improvisatory movement and coordinated breathwork will be used continuously as a companion to our sounds and will be a supportive backdrop to these explorations. 

BIO:

Livanna Maislen received her BFA in Dance at NYU Tisch School of the Arts, and upon graduating ventured into Aerial Dance. Maislen has performed aerial-installations for Microsoft, Clinique, Verizon and Nestle, and has toured abroad in Italy, Czech Republic and Bahrain. While Dancer/Rehearsal Assistant with Time Lapse Dance (a Loie Fuller-inspired company), Maislen led residencies at Hofstra and De Sale’s University. In 2013, Maislen became a performer with the Off-Broadway show Sleep No More, where she played eight different roles during her 7 year tenure with Punchdrunk. In 2015, Maislen became Dancer and Rehearsal Assistant for The Francesca Harper Project (FHP), where she assisted in projects such as Nick Cave's Bessie-Award Winning show “The Let Go”, Nona Hendryx & Carrie Mae Weem's "Refrigerated Dreams" and Austria’s Bregenzer Fruehling’s Tanzfestival. Maislen has performed for Nicole von Arx, Yin Yue, Karole Armitage, the San Francisco Opera and the Seattle Opera. She is currently pursuing her Master’s Degree in Somatic Psychotherapy at CIIS and is developing a somatic practice that interweaves her knowledge of movement, mindfulness practices, theatre, and the power of sound.

IG - @livanna-maislen

ASHLEY MENESTRINA:

Ashley Menestrina is a movement artist, performer, teacher, and choreographer. Her repertoire of

solo works: Always a Creature , The Human Condition: Absent Presence, and Combative Echoes

have been performed in eight countries and received numerous awards from festival juries. Since

moving to Seattle in 2021, Ashley has created a new work thanks to Velocity Dance Center’s

Bridge Project program. This creation was performed at SIDF and Gonzaga University where

she also commissioned a new work for their repertory company. Additionally, Ashley has worked

with Anna Mlasowsky for the Amazon A.I.R program, Emily Schoen Branch, and Maia Melene

Durfee in collaborative processes.

CLASS DESCRIPTION:

The Connective Tissue Series is a movement-based improvisational practice that enables us to

mindfully link the relationship of our own physical tissue to the more metaphorical connections

that allow us to be seen and heard in everyday life. This series invites you to personally

experience your own unique molecular nuances, sense them, understand them, grow them, and

ultimately integrate them into surrounding portals of connectivity. Class will consist of an

improv based warm up followed by phrase work.

ASHLEY MENESTRINA:

Ashley Menestrina is a movement artist, performer, teacher, and choreographer. Her repertoire of

solo works: Always a Creature , The Human Condition: Absent Presence, and Combative Echoes

have been performed in eight countries and received numerous awards from festival juries. Since

moving to Seattle in 2021, Ashley has created a new work thanks to Velocity Dance Center’s

Bridge Project program. This creation was performed at SIDF and Gonzaga University where

she also commissioned a new work for their repertory company. Additionally, Ashley has worked

with Anna Mlasowsky for the Amazon A.I.R program, Emily Schoen Branch, and Maia Melene

Durfee in collaborative processes.

CLASS DESCRIPTION:

The Connective Tissue Series is a movement-based improvisational practice that enables us to

mindfully link the relationship of our own physical tissue to the more metaphorical connections

that allow us to be seen and heard in everyday life. This series invites you to personally

experience your own unique molecular nuances, sense them, understand them, grow them, and

ultimately integrate them into surrounding portals of connectivity. Class will consist of an

improv based warm up followed by phrase work.

ASHLEY MENESTRINA:

Ashley Menestrina is a movement artist, performer, teacher, and choreographer. Her repertoire of

solo works: Always a Creature , The Human Condition: Absent Presence, and Combative Echoes

have been performed in eight countries and received numerous awards from festival juries. Since

moving to Seattle in 2021, Ashley has created a new work thanks to Velocity Dance Center’s

Bridge Project program. This creation was performed at SIDF and Gonzaga University where

she also commissioned a new work for their repertory company. Additionally, Ashley has worked

with Anna Mlasowsky for the Amazon A.I.R program, Emily Schoen Branch, and Maia Melene

Durfee in collaborative processes.

CLASS DESCRIPTION:

The Connective Tissue Series is a movement-based improvisational practice that enables us to

mindfully link the relationship of our own physical tissue to the more metaphorical connections

that allow us to be seen and heard in everyday life. This series invites you to personally

experience your own unique molecular nuances, sense them, understand them, grow them, and

ultimately integrate them into surrounding portals of connectivity. Class will consist of an

improv based warm up followed by phrase work.

ASHLEY MENESTRINA:

Ashley Menestrina is a movement artist, performer, teacher, and choreographer. Her repertoire of

solo works: Always a Creature , The Human Condition: Absent Presence, and Combative Echoes

have been performed in eight countries and received numerous awards from festival juries. Since

moving to Seattle in 2021, Ashley has created a new work thanks to Velocity Dance Center’s

Bridge Project program. This creation was performed at SIDF and Gonzaga University where

she also commissioned a new work for their repertory company. Additionally, Ashley has worked

with Anna Mlasowsky for the Amazon A.I.R program, Emily Schoen Branch, and Maia Melene

Durfee in collaborative processes.

CLASS DESCRIPTION:

The Connective Tissue Series is a movement-based improvisational practice that enables us to

mindfully link the relationship of our own physical tissue to the more metaphorical connections

that allow us to be seen and heard in everyday life. This series invites you to personally

experience your own unique molecular nuances, sense them, understand them, grow them, and

ultimately integrate them into surrounding portals of connectivity. Class will consist of an

improv based warm up followed by phrase work.

Lucie Baker:

Lucie Baker is a dance artist, and expressive arts facilitator based in Seattle, Washington. She began studying dance from a young age and her curiosity for movement led her to pursue a career as a professional performer and choreographer in New York City and abroad. In her training, she earned a BFA from the Juilliard School and an MFA from the University of Washington. After a decade of performing, creating, and teaching, she became interested in the intersection of dance and mental health and received her expressive arts therapy training at the Tamalpa Institute, founded by Anna and Daria Halprin. Her classes integrate her background in western concert dance and social dance with her love of somatics and anatomy. She now continues to develop her artistic practice alongside offering Expressive Arts classes for diverse populations. To learn more visit www.luciebaker.com 

CLASS DESCRIPTION:

Lucie is offering a 4 class series at Open Flight Studios focused on supporting professional and advanced contemporary dancers in deepening their practice. Dancers will cultivate awareness, coordination, strength, and expressive articulation through juicy breath-based phrase work and playful improvisations. The class draws on Limón movement principles paired with contemporary floor work and somatic skill building. We will drop our weight, move our joints, play with momentum, and embody our souls. 

Sliding scale $15-$25

Register in advance here: https://app.squarespacescheduling.com/schedule.php?owner=25125806&appointmentType=42553546

 CAMEO LETHEM:

Cameo is a choreographer and performer based in Seattle. Her work has been shown at On the

Boards, Velocity Dance Center, Erickson Theater, 12th Ave Arts, Kirkland Performance Center,

Base: Experimental Arts + Space, Yaw Theater, Electric Lodge, and more. She’s performed for

choreographers Alice Gosti, Kate Wallich, Maria Malstrom, and others. She's received

mentorships from Sidra Bell and Nia-Amina Minor through The Breaking Glass Project. Cameo

was also a recipient of SeattleDances’ 2017 DanceCrush award and 2019’s James Ray

Residency.

 CAMEO LETHEM:

Cameo is a choreographer and performer based in Seattle. Her work has been shown at On the

Boards, Velocity Dance Center, Erickson Theater, 12th Ave Arts, Kirkland Performance Center,

Base: Experimental Arts + Space, Yaw Theater, Electric Lodge, and more. She’s performed for

choreographers Alice Gosti, Kate Wallich, Maria Malstrom, and others. She's received

mentorships from Sidra Bell and Nia-Amina Minor through The Breaking Glass Project. Cameo

was also a recipient of SeattleDances’ 2017 DanceCrush award and 2019’s James Ray

Residency.

 CAMEO LETHEM:

Cameo is a choreographer and performer based in Seattle. Her work has been shown at On the

Boards, Velocity Dance Center, Erickson Theater, 12th Ave Arts, Kirkland Performance Center,

Base: Experimental Arts + Space, Yaw Theater, Electric Lodge, and more. She’s performed for

choreographers Alice Gosti, Kate Wallich, Maria Malstrom, and others. She's received

mentorships from Sidra Bell and Nia-Amina Minor through The Breaking Glass Project. Cameo

was also a recipient of SeattleDances’ 2017 DanceCrush award and 2019’s James Ray

Residency.